Woody Allen's new creation is a tale of two married couples' extramarital pursuit of happiness.
Woody Allen: A 'Stranger' Always, And Mortal Too
()Woody Allen's films tend to involve rococo relationships, which is probably why questions about the autobiographical impulse tend to dog him in interviews. But he says the characters in You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger come mostly from his imagination -- though he won't entirely discount his unconscious obsessions.
Television
'Idol' Struggles To Re-Create Its Winning Panel()
Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell helped make American Idol a multimillion-dollar franchise. Now that their reign has ended, Idol producers are out to re-create that judging panel's success.
Author Interviews
Manhattan Meets Grimm In Book Of 'Modern Fairies'()
September 21, 2010 In her new book, Modern Fairies, Dwarves, Goblins, and Other Nasties, Lesley M.M. Blume creates a world in which trolls use bones for money and dwarfs dig rubies out of the Lincoln Tunnel.
Books We Like
'Girls Don't Cry': Hazards Of 'Campaigning While Female'()
September 21, 2010 Rebecca Traister's incisive analysis of misogyny and gender roles in the 2008 election takes on Tina Fey's satire, "Iron My Shirt" T-shirts and Hillary Clinton's "Night of the Imaginary Tears."
Author Interviews
David Rakoff's 'Half Empty' Lessons In Misanthropy()
September 21, 2010 Rakoff doesn't often look on the bright side, and in his latest collection of essays, he explains why you shouldn't either. Thoroughly depressing subjects addressed in Half Empty include cancer, AIDS and Sept. 11.
Movies
'Catfish' Creators Catch Digital Life In Action()
September 20, 2010 The documentary Catfish tackles a new problem for this generation of filmmakers: How do you make a visually dynamic film about people who spend all of their time in front of computers?
The Two-Way
'True Prep' Sure Sign Prep Is Dead()
September 20, 2010 A new updated version of the Official Preppy Handbook shows a world where the old Prep's actually have little place.
Author Interviews
Michele Norris On Race, And 'The Grace Of Silence'()
September 20, 2010 In her new memoir, NPR's All Things Considered co-host uncovers some painful family secrets -- the "things left unsaid" by her African-American relatives as they tried to shield the younger generation from memories that haunted the past.
Author Interviews
Roald Dahl: The Story Of The 'Storyteller'()
September 20, 2010 Readers know Roald Dahl through his books, specifically his children's stories. But Donald Sturrock's Storyteller: The Authorized Biography of Roald Dahl delves much deeper into the life of the famed author.
Fiction
Two First Novels, 10 Years In The Making()
September 19, 2010 WMRAFiction writing isn't for the faint of heart; it promises years of obscurity, little money, and no guarantee that anyone will ever read your work. Yet authors keep at it -- WMRA's Martha Woodroof caught up with two first-time novelists, Jessica Francis Kane and Susanna Daniel, to find out what it takes.
Theater
150 Years Of Afghan History In One Theater Marathon()
September 18, 2010 A tiny London theater company has taken on an enormous project -- to tell the story of Western involvement in Afghanistan over the last century and half in an all-day production. The Great Game: Afghanistan was a hit in Britain and has just opened a US tour at the Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington, D.C.
Architecture
A Kitchen Revolution Aimed At Freeing Women()
September 18, 2010 These days there are magazines and television programs devoted to kitchen design, but it's an idea that took off only less than a century ago. In fact, as a new exhibit at New York's Museum of Modern Art shows, designing a kitchen started off as a political act.
Movie Reviews
'Easy A': Reputation Management, With Hiccups()
September 19, 2010 Previously known best for a small role in Superbad, Emma Stone shines in a comedy that owes a little bit to The Scarlet Letter and a little more to Sixteen Candles.
